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INCREASING Speed

3K views 22 replies 15 participants last post by  Newnan3 
#1 ·
Hi guys,

I want to know the best way to increase my speed other than putting on the miles?

Do you think someone's speed/power is determined by his genetic? Me for example, I can't pass 35kmh on flats no matter how hard I try (and that's with commuting 60km/day everyday). When I don't commute everyday my speed just decreases quiet much.

What's the training you guys do to increase your speed? My friend for example, with the same amount of miles we put in, he can get to 40kmh but somehow I can't.


Steve
 
#4 ·
I believe he's referring to B.

My mileage is significantly less than your 60km commute, but through targeted interval training I have been able to develop speeds of 40kph+ on the flats.

One exercise I find particularly beneficial is doing intensive 30 minute sessions of high gear / high cadence intervals on my rollers, though I'm sure this activity could also be simulated on the road.
 
#5 ·
intervals hill sprints etc. for me i found its as simple as riding with faster people. i also try same hill day after day in bigger gears. trying to remain seated. another way is find a 3 mile uniterupted flat go it as hard as you can a few times a week this will give you a decent gauge of your improvement
 
#6 ·
Thanks everyone. What I"m looking for is a way to increase my rolling speed to 35kmh. At the moment that's my max speed ie. sprinting but on rolling I'm like 24-28kmh.

In terms of endurance ie. 35kmh over 60km and more I think I can train that by simply riding at longer distance. What I'm still curious about is how I can improve my average speed to 35kmh in the first place. I have never been able to do it ...grrrr....

So after reading all of your comments above, can I summarize that only by increasing your mileage that your legs will get stronger? What's other ways to quicken that?

Some of my friends tell me that I should ride in a group because a group makes you faster. I personally don't quiet agree 100% because in the group people are generally faster anyway and to be honest with you, pulling 35kmh in a group is quiet easy but when I ride alone, still my speed decreases again. Should I be the lead man in the group?

What about going to the gym? Will that help, too?
 
#7 ·
So after reading all of your comments above, can I summarize that only by increasing your mileage that your legs will get stronger? What's other ways to quicken that?
Not really, myself and others referred to doing short intervals of high-intensity cycling. For example, over the course of a short ride you might choose to push yourself as hard as you can for say 2 minutes, then take it easy for 5 minutes, then go hard for another 2 minutes, etc etc. This kind of training can be a good way to maximise performance gains with less hours on the bike.
 
#9 ·
I find that when I do a lot of base miles in the winter time or long distance rides I tend to not have much power. Only when Im doing intervals do I tend to have good power and speed.

Theyre two different types of fitness and you have to train for both....
 
#10 ·
At least 15 minute warm up longer if you want, I encourage more. 3 minutes at threshold and 3 minutes off, repeat 5 times. Cool down at least 15 minutes, I suggest more. Build up to 5 minutes, then 8 minutes. Every 4th or 5th week, just ride 90 minutes with no interval then start at the amount of time you left off. I'd do this mid week "wednesday for myself" and have a hard push on the weekend "saturday for myself. Use Monday & Friday as recovery "no more than 12mph average for at least 60 minutes. Use Tuesday & Thursday as base days average at least 17-18 miles an hour solo or 20 with a buddy/ies. Use Sunday as a base day but long. Effort doesn't matter but shoot for four hours in the saddle.

Most important, listen to your body and don't neglect your rest week. On a rest week, take out intervals on wednesday and take back your effort on Saturday. Leave everything else the same.
 
#14 ·
many different interval training plans are available. I like mixing in a simple interval ride once a week, that is just warm-up/tempo ride for half an hour, then an hour of 4 minutes all out interval, 4 minutes rest (barely moving), repeat, then end with another half hour of tempo/cool down. There are many better, and more complicated interval plans, but just doing some will help increase speed.
 
#15 ·
Best way to increase speed, IMO, is to read a good book on the subject and then systematically apply those principles to your training.

The complete training story: "The Cyclist's Training Bible". Friel
An abridged version: "The Time Crunched Cyclists". Carmichael
 
#18 ·
There are four main ways for a solo rider to increase speed:

1 - go down a sufficiently steep hill
2 - ride with a sufficiently strong tail wind
3 - pedal the same gear at a higher cadence
4 - pedal a bigger gear at the same or higher cadence.

For sake of consistent, repeatable gains in speed, I suggest you focus your attention on the items 3 and 4.
 
#19 ·
As mentioned I'm currently commuting at 60km a day and that's another challenge on its own. Why? Because if I use too high cadence eg. 90-100, my body is totally tired after I arrive at home. If I use too high gear at lower cadence eg. 70-80, my legs are get too tired.

So I think I have to sort of mix with interval. Even with interval I can't really push myself too much because I will get too tired for the next day ride. I don't prefer to have a rest day...recovery ride is more preferable.
 
#22 ·
Doing lots of miles doesn't equate directly to speed. You need to do speed specific workouts.
Oh no.,...really? Hm....so with my current condition ie. the 60km a day what's your suggestion? As mentioned I will face the leg problem if I push too hard (hence the need of taking rest days which I don't prefer), but if I don't push too hard, you're right I don't get that much benefit.
 
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